STAPLE.

THE parish of Staple lies north-eastward from
Adisham, from which and the rest of the hundred of
Downhamford, it is separated entirely by the hundred
and parish of Wingham intervening. The manor of
Adisham claims over this parish, and at that court a
borsholder is chosen for the borough of Staple, which
extends over the whole of this parish.

The parish, which is but small, lies in a pleasant
healthy country, mostly on high ground. The soil
near the village, and towards the stream, is very good
corn land, but towards the southern part it is rather
poor, and much of it chalky. The village, called
Staple-street, consists of about ten houses, having the
seat of Groves, and the church near adjoining. Beyond which the parish extends into the vale eastward,
as far as Durlock bridge, on the stream which rises at
a small distance from it, and runs from hence to
Danne-bridge into the Wingham stream. On the high
ground, on the opposite side of the valley, is the hamlet of Shatterling, built on the high road leading from
Canterbury through Wingham, towards Ash and
Sandwich, where the soil becomes very poor, and a deep
sand, up to which road the park grounds of Grove
extend. On the opposite side of the parish is Crixall
house, once a gentleman's seat, but now diminished
to the common size of a farm-house. Near it is a
piece of healthy ground, called Crixall Rough, with
a noted toll of trees on it, a conspicuous object to the
surrounding country. There is no woodland in the
parish. A fair is held here on the 25th of July, for
toys and pedlary.

Groves is a mansion in this parish, which in early
times was the residence of a knightly family, called
Grove, who in antient deeds were sometimes written
at Grove, in which it remained till the reign of king
Henry VI. when it devolved by descent to Sir John
Grove, who was a great benefactor to the church of
St. Peter, in Sandwich, where he lies buried, under a
monument, with his effigies at full length on it, and
his shield of arms at his side, the bearing on which
has been long since obliterated. Soon after which
this seat was carried, by a female heir, in marriage to
one of the family of St. Nicholas, in which it remained but a small time, for about the latter end of
king Edward IV. it was alienated to Quilter, in which
name it remained till the middle of queen Elizabeth's
reign, when Christopher Quilter, gent. alienated it,
together with his interest in the lease of the manor of Down-court, the inheritance of which belonged
to the master and fellows of St. John's college, in
Cambridge, to Simon Lynch, gent. of Sandwich,
whose family was settled at Cranbrooke in the reign
of king Henry VI. as appears by several of their wills
in the Prerogative-office, Canterbury, and was the first
of them who removed to Sandwich, which he represented in parliament in queen Mary's reign, and afterwards to this seat of Groves, on his purchase of it, and
added much to the buildings of it; in whose descendants, who resided at Grove, and were buried
in the Grove chancel, in this church, this seat continued
down to John Lynch, esq. of Groves, who was
colonel of the militia, and kept his shrievalty in 1714
at this seat, where he died in 1733, having married
Sarah, daughter of Francis Head, esq. of Rochester,
who died in child bed of her nineteenth child in 1710.
Of them, there survived to maturity only two sons
and five daughters, the former were John and George,
the latter of whom was M. D. of Canterbury, of
whom more will be mentioned hereafter, under Ripple. John Lynch, the eldest son, was of Groves, and
was S. T. P. and among other preferments became
dean of Canterbury. He died in 1760, and was buried in the Groves chancel. He married Mary,
youngest surviving daughter of archbishop Wake, by
whom he had two sons and five daughters, viz. William, of whom hereafter; John LL. D. now prebendary and archdeacon of Canterbury, and unmarried.
Ethelreda, married to Thomas Hey, A. M. rector of
Wickham Breaus; Sarah, to William Tatton, D. D.
prebendary of Canterbury and York; Mary, to Sir
Thomas Hanham, bart. Catherine, first to Henry
knight, esq. and secondly to John Norris, esq. and
Hester-Elizabeth, all since deceased. Wm. Lynch,
esq. the eldest son, resided at Groves, served twice in
parliament for the city of Canterbury, was made a
knight of the bath, a privy counsellor, and envoy extraordinary to the court of Turin. He married Mary,
eldest daughter and coheir of Edward Coke, esq. of
Canterbury, by whom he had no issue. He bore for
his arms, Sable, three lynxes rampant, proper. To which
were granted supporters, Two lynxes, proper. Sir William Lynch made great improvements to this seat,
building two wings to it, and adding an entire new
front of stucco to the whole; besides which, he made
extensive plantations, and new laid out the grounds
adjoining, in the form and stile of a park. In the
house is a small, but valuable collection of good pictures. Sir William Lynch died abroad in 1785, possessed
of this seat of Groves, together with the lease of
the manor of Down court, and by will devised them,
with the rest of his estates, to his widow lady Lynch,
who is the present owner of Groves, at which she resides, and is the present lessee likewise of Down-court.

The manor of Crixall, or more properly
Crickshall, and in some antient deeds written Crickleadhall, is an estate in the southern part of this parish, which had once the family of Brockhull as proprietors of it, and they possessed it till the 28th year
of king Edward I. and then it was settled upon a
daughter of it; but whether she carried it by marriage or not to Wadham, a family which I find were
possessed of it about the latter end of Edward III.'s
reign, cannot be discovered. However that be, William Wadham, as appears by an antient pedigree of
the family of Fogge, lived in the reigns of king
Henry IV. V. and VI. during which he was a justice
of the peace for Somerseshire, and was possessed of
this estate, which he left to his son and heir Sir Nicholas Wadham, whose daughter and heir, about the
reign of king Edward IV. married Sir Wm. Fogge,
and entitled him to the possession of this manor, which
he lest to his son Sir John Fogge, of Repton, in Ashford, comptroller and treasurer of the houshold to king
Edward IV. and a privy counsellor. He died in the
6th year of king Henry VII. anno 1490, and by his
will devised this manor to his son Thomas Fogge, being his only son by his second wife. He was afterwards knighted, and was sergeant porter of Calais, in
both the reigns of king Henry VII. and VIII. in the
first year of which latter reign, he alienated this manor
to Ralph Banister, from which name, before the reign
of queen Elizabeth, it passed by sale to Tucker, one
of whose descendants sold it to Omested, and John
Omested, at the latter end of that reign passed it away
to William Smith, who in king James I.'s reign alienated it to Dr. Martin Fotherby, prebendary of Canterbury,
and afterwards made bishop of Salisbury.
He was son of Martin Fotherby, of Great Grimsby,
in Lincolnshire, and younger brother of Dr. Charles
Fortherby, dean of Canterbury. He died in 1620,
and was succeeded by his son Thomas Fotherby, esq.
of Crickshall, who lest one son Thomas, and a daughter Priscilla, married to William Kingsley, esq. of
Canterbury, the eldest grandson of archdeacon Kingsley. Thomas Fotherby, gent. the son, resided here,
and died in 1710, s. p. Upon which it came to Anthony Kingsley, gent. of London, youngest son of
William, by his wife Priscilla above-mentioned, whose
three sons, Anthony, M. D. Thomas, and Charles,
successively became possessed of it, and on the death
of the latter, in 1785, it descended to his eldest son
Charles Kingsley, esq. of Lymington, and afterwards
of Canterbury, where he died in 1786, and his infant
son, of the same name, is now, by settlement, entitled
to the inheritance of it. A court baron is held for this
manor.

There was a family of the name of Omer, called
likewife Homer, which had constantly resided in this
parish, their mansion being in Staple-street, for upwards of four hundred years, as appears by old courtrolls wills, and other evidences. (fn. 1) The last of them
who resided here, was Laurence Omer, gent. who
died about the year 1661, leaving an only son Charles,
who died unmarried; their burial-place was in this
church-yard, and there are now two of their tombs
remaining there, one of which is much adorned with
sculpture, but the inscriptions are nearly obliterated,
only there can be read on the latter, the name Omer,
alias Homer.

There are no parochial charities. The poor constantly maintained are about thirty-four, casually
twenty.

This parish is within the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of
Bridge.

The church, which is exempt from the jurisdiction
of the archdeacon, is dedicated to St. James, and confirst of two isles and two chancels, having a tower
steeple at the west end, in which are four bells. The
church is remarkably long and low. The south isle
and chancel are upon the same level, nor is there any
separation between them. On the sides of the chancel
are rails, very low, about two feet from the wall, very
unusual. In the north isle is a vault for the family of
Terry, in which the late Terry Marsh, esq. of Canterbury, who died in 1789, is buried; and on the
pavement are several memorials of them. The font is
antient, of stone, an octagon, with emblematical
carved figures. The north chancel is the Groves chancel, having a circular roof, adorned with painting.
One half of the east part of it was made into a vault by
dean Lynch, for himself and family, in which himself,
his wife, Sir William Lynch, K. B. his eldest son,
Mrs. Tatton, her husband and son, and his youngest
daughter Hester-Elizabeth, lie buried. In this chancel are several monuments for this family. In the east
window of it there are the arms of Lynch, with quarterings. By some small remains in the windows there
seems to have been good painted glass formerly in them.
In the church-yard are several tombs for the Terreys;
and two for the Omers, as has been mentioned before.

This church was always accounted as a chapel to
the church of Adisham, and continues so at this time.
It is as such valued with that church in the king's
books. There is now a vicarage-house and some glebe
belonging to the rector of Adisham, as vicar of it.

In 1588 here were communicants one hundred and
forty-eight, and in 1640 the same.